


Soulmates

by Nightmare_insomnia



Series: Renegades au [1]
Category: Renegades - Marissa Meyer
Genre: F/M, Soulmate AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-30
Updated: 2019-07-04
Packaged: 2020-02-10 13:57:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18661786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nightmare_insomnia/pseuds/Nightmare_insomnia
Summary: basically a soulmate au where everything is black and white until you meet your soulmate





	1. Chapter 1

Adrian scanned the crowded streets of downtown Gatlon. Throngs of people, all dressed as their favorite superheroes lined the streets waiting for the hero and villain floats. He scanned the crowd, and although he was technically on duty, none of his team really expected an attack. After all, what villain would be stupid enough to attach the parade when the entire council plus countless other renegades were there to witness it? 

The world spread out before him was gloomy, all in shades of gray. The world was only in black and white until you met eyes with your soulmate, and even at 18, Adrian hadn’t met them yet. 

His eyes wandered over the crowd, watching for any potential disturbances. Adrian’s gaze snapped to Magpie, a young Renegade with a fascination for small and valuable objects. She was making her way towards a girl with short dark hair. The girl’s stance was very different from the rest of the crowd, as if she was waiting for an attack from any side at any minute. Magpie crashed into the girl, and Adrian calmly walked towards the duo. With her hands on Magpie’s shoulders, the girl righted herself, mouth moving as she scolded her. Adrian started as he realised that he had been staring at her lips for a good 30 seconds. He grabbed her ankle and flipped her upside down, and strolled back to the girl. 

“Give it back,” he said. 

Magpie flailed in his grasp. “Put me down! Let me go!” 

Everyone around them was watching the group, and the girl fidgeted, obviously uncomfortable with the attention. “What are you going? Put her down.” She was still staring around at the crowd

“All right, Mini-Magpie. You’ve got three seconds before I send in a request to put you on probation. Come to think of it, I’m pretty sure the janitorial crew has been needing some help lately…” 

Magpie huffed and reached into her pocket, grabbing the object she had stolen from the girl and holding it out to her. Glaring at Adrian, she growled, “I hate you,” before running off.

The girl glared after Magpie, before squinting at him and saying, “She’s just going to rob someone else, you know.” 

“Well, we can hope that it will make her rethink her options.” He glanced at her face, and his eyes finally met hers. Her eyes widened as she stared at him, a blush hinting at her cheeks. A blush? Her face was turning pink, her eyes fading into color. They were a rich blue with hints of gray, and they widened as she took in the world surrounding them. 

She tore her gaze from his eyes and glanced down at her bracelet. 

“Er- do you want help with that?” 

She started, and he glanced down at her hands, his soulmates hands. They were clenched so hard around her bracelet that her knuckles were white. “With what? The bracelet?”

He nodded, and before she could pull away her hand he grabbed it and peeled open her fingers. “When I was a kid, my mom used to always ask me to help her with her brace- Oh. The clasp is broken.” 

Her face, which had been scrutinizing his face moment before snapped down to their hands. “That little brat!” 

“It’s okay, I can fix it.” 

“Fix it? You don’t understand. That bracelet, it isn’t…it’s…” She was flustered, trying to pull her hand away from his, but he gripped it harder. 

“No, trust me. This wrist, right?” He wrapped the bracelet around her wrist, and felt her freeze. Holding the bracelet with one hand he uncapped the marker and began to draw onto her skin. The bracelet was beautiful, an ornate filigree. He blew across the drawing, connecting the two ends of the bracelet. Goosebumps raced up her arms, and she shivered slightly under his touch. She pulled her arm out of Adrian’s grasp and inspected it. 

“What about the stone?” 

“That was already missing.” 

“Want me to draw one anyway?” He started to reach for her arm, but she shied away from him. 

“No,” she stammered. “No, thank you.” 

Adrian smiled. She was flustered, and it was  _ really _ cute. “Okay.” An air of awkwardness fell over the duo, and in desperation to keep talking to her, he shuffled his feet and shrugged. “So… What do you think of-” 

“Are you a Renegade?” 

He nodded, showing her the communication band on his wrist. “Adrian Everhart, alias Sketch, at your service.” 

“I-I have to go,” She turned to go, but Adrian grabbed her hand and pulled her back to him.   
“Wait. You see it too, right? The color?” She gaped at him, and the look on her face was as good as an answer for him. 

“Let me go,” she hissed. And he did. The girl,  _ his soulmate,  _ turned and pushed through a crowd of costumed Renegade supporters. One of them shoved a piece of paper at her, and she crumpled it into a ball and crammed it into her pocket. 

“You’re welcome!” He yelled after her. She didn’t look back, and he watched as she ducked through the crowd, disappearing behind the adoring fans. 

Adrian turned the other way and made his way back to where the rest of his team had gathered, and contemplated the events that had occured moments ago. He had met his soulmate, but she was gone, with no way of finding her again. 


	2. Two

“Next up-Nova McLain! Alias:  _ Insomnia! _ ”

Adrian straightened in his seat as a new prodigy stalked into the center of the ring. There was something familiar about her. She stopped beneath the banner and the blinding lights, looking not at the teams surrounding her, but up. At the Council. 

The arena was blinding, and even after a few days, Adrian hadn’t gotten used to seeing the world in color. He leaned forward and examined the girl in front of him. It was her stance that struck him first-the way she held herself like she was preparing for an attack from all sides. Like she welcomed it. The jut of her chin, the set of her shoulders, feet firmly planted on the ground. Relaxed enough, but ready for a fight. 

His eyes widened. It was her, his  _ soulmate _ . The girl from the parade. 

She was a  _ prodigy _ ?

Pushing up the bridge of his glasses, he leaned forward toward Ruby. “What did they say her name was?”

“Uh. . .” Ruby looked down at the tablet. “Nova. Nova Mclain.” 

_ Nova McLain.  _

“Insomnia,” came Blacklight’s booming voice. “You may proceed with a demonstration of your superpower.” 

Adrian scooted his chair forward, leaning his elbows on the table. His gaze kept darting between the girl on the field and the big screen that showed a close-up of her face. Wisps of wavy black hair cut just above her shoulders. A sharp nose and a sharp chin, and sharp cheekbones, her determined frown making them all seem much too severe. Rich Blue eyes, every bit as wary now as they had been when he’d offered to help fix the broken clasp of her bracelet. 

The overhead microphone carried her voice as she responded, “I’m afraid my superpower isn’t one that can be demonstrated on a field in thirty seconds or less.” 

A quiet titter moved through the crowd. There was something defiant in her voice, so unlike the other contestants who had been enthusiastic and sometimes desperate, to show what they could do. 

When asked to describe her power, Nova McLain raised her chin and answered, simply, “I don’t sleep.”

Adrian’s brow twitched. The crowd, too, seemed to find this explanation baffling, though after a hesitant moment, there were a few sporadic books from the seats, and a number of zero cards lifted into the air. 

“Would you care to elaborate?” 

One side of Nova McLain’s mouth lifted, and his eyes locked onto her lips once more. “Certainly.” She cleared her throat. “I don’t sleep . . .  _ ever.” _

There was some laughter from the audience. Two team leaders tapped  _ reject _ into their tablet screens, including Genissa Clark. 

Adrian felt Ruby and Oscar looking at him, but he kept his eyes on Nova McLain. 

_ Insomnia.  _

“Now,” Nova continued, “if you would like to know what useful non- _ super  _ abilities I have, I can tell you that I’m adept at hand-to-hand combat and a multitude of weaponry. I can run a seven-minute mile, long-jump and expanse of eighteen feet with a running start, and I know an awful lot about physics, electronics, and renewable energy sources, among other things.” 

Oscar let out a low whistle. 

“I can’t tell if that was arrogant,” Ruby muttered, “or just. . . you know, honest.”

“The two aren’t mutually exclusive,” said Oscar. 

“She doesn’t sleep,” said Adrian,   his marker against the table. “Could be good for surveillance, don’t you think? We might be able to use her, especially while Danna’s recovering.”  _ And I could actually get to know her, actually talk to her.  _

Ruby leaned forward. “But why does she look like she has something to prove?” 

Adrian smiled wryly. “This is Renegade trials. Everyone has something to prove.”

 

***

Nova glanced around, spinning slowly to take in the crowd. There was a mix of  _ ZERO  _  and  _ HERO  _  signs, almost half and half. She looked up at the scoreboard, to find that only one team hadn’t answered yet.  Glancing to the table, her eyes met those of the team leader.

_ It was him.  _ Her soulmate. His eyes widened in recognition, his expression mirroring hers. Nova straightened, and narrowed her eyes, inspecting his face. 

_ And there’s my opening.  _ Nova gave him a small smile and watched as his face broke into a grin. 

“Sketch,” said Blacklight, “do you or your team have any follow-up questions before making your decision?” 

The boy pulled the microphone on his table closer and asked, ”So, when you say you  _ never  _ sleep . . . you do mean never, ever,  _ ever _ ?”

“Never ever, ever . . .  _ ever.” _

He leaned back, staring at her from across the field. One of his team members leaned over and whispered in his ear. The boy grabbed the tablet and punched a few buttons, and his response flashed on the scoreboard- _ ACCEPTED.  _

Nova narrowed her eyes at the table, trying not to let her giddiness show. Her new teammates were talking amongst themselves, and Nova could have sworn the leader was  _ blushing _ . 

An ear-splitting horn blared over the noise of the audience. Nova groaned, for even she knew what that meant. Her acceptance was being challenged. Glancing at the challenging team, she spotted a figure looming behind Frostbite. 

It was the Gargoyle. 

_ Oh, this was going to be perfect.  _

***

Adrian sighed and tried to catch Nova’s eyes, apologetically, perhaps, though he wasn’t sure what he had to apologize for. But her attention stayed fixed on Genissa. She didn’t look upset. If anything, a spark of excitement had entered her gaze that Adrian was sure hadn’t been there before. 

“There has been a challenge!” Blacklight repeated, for anyone who wasn’t paying attention. :Insomnia, in order to take your place among the Renegades, you must defeat one member of the challenging team in a one-on-one duel. You may choose your opponent. Do you accept this challenge?”

“Wait. Frostbite, listen. I know we can use skills like hers, both on my team and in the broader Renegades organization. I respectfully ask that you retract your challenge.”

Genissa laughed. “News flash, Everhart. The rest of us don’t sleep for sixteen hours of the day, either. It’s not exactly a  _ super _ power, and besides, how can any of us be sure she’s telling the truth?”

“Why would she lie?”

“Because she wants to be one of us,” responded Genissa. “Because they  _ all _ want to be one of us.” 

“Then why wouldn’t she make up a more. . .  _ super  _ superpower? Why not-”

“I accept the challenge.”

 

***

Everhart. 

Frostbite had called him Everhart, and in the span of a single heartbeat Nova realized why he had seemed so familiar to her at the parade. 

He was Adrian Everhart. Son of Lady Indomitable, one of the original Renegades, and adopted son of none other than Captain Chromium and the Dread Warden. This boy had Renegades blood coursing through his body. Of course her soulmate had to be a Renegade. But why  _ him _ , of all people? He was the son of her sworn enemies, and she should have known. She should never have gone to that parade, never looked at him. But she had, and it was all their fault. Her family was dead because of the Renegades, and she wouldn’t let a tradition get in the way of her revenge. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is so long and probably quite boring i'm so sorry
> 
> also! if you have an idea for what part(s) of archenemies I should do before i get to before the whole reason I started this leave a comment and maybe I'll do it!

Nova found herself loitering on the edges of the tent, watching the party with a mix of delight at seeing the children’s innocent enthusiasm, but also a fair amount of pity when she thought of how misplaced that enthusiasm was. 

_ Renegades,  _ she wanted to tell them,  _ they’ll break your heart in the end.  _

Except she couldn’t convince herself that  _ this _ Renegade would. 

Every time Nova felt herself drawn in by Adrian’s handsome features and open smile she remembered her origins. It could never work. No matter if they were “soulmates.”  She was an Anarchist. She was  _ Nightmare.  _ Her thoughts hardened into bricks and every time she would add one to her wall, Adrian would break another down. One would crumble every time Adrian so much as looked at her. 

 

***

Adrian watched Nova as she talked to the girl who must have been the birthday boy’s sister. Nova was eating a piece of cake that the girl had just brought her. There was an orange sprinkle on the corner of her mouth, and Adrian grinned. She glanced up and met his eyes, and he could have sworn he saw a tinge of red on her cheeks. Looking away, he turned back to the kids milled up around him and began drawing the pony a child had requested onto the yellow tent wall. 

As he noticed Nova making her way towards him, he paused. 

“First,” said Nova, “you might want to check with the parents before giving any of these kids an actual pony. Second, we should probably move on?” 

“First,” Adrian replied, “you missed a sprinkle.” He reached out to brush the sprinkle off of the corner of her mouth. Her eyes widened and he felt her freeze. They stood there for a second, staring into each other’s eyes with flushed cheeks. “Second, you’re absolutely right.” He drew his hand back and popped the orange sprinkle into his mouth, watching as her cheeks darkened further. Stepping back, he finished his sketch of the pony and pulled it from the wall as a stuffed animal, not a living creature. “And we’re calling that my big finale, kids,” he said, capping the marker and moving away from the tent walls to a chorus of disappointed groans. 

“I know, I know. But heroism awaits!” He said a couple quick words to the parents, thanking them for their hospitality, before grabbing Nova’s hand and pulling her out of the tent. 

“You’re welcome,” said Nova, her face still flushed. She was staring down at their hands, a funny expression on her face. She glanced back up at him and tugged her hand out of his, much to Adrian’s disappointment. He had been working up the courage to hold her hand all day, only to have her pull hers out a few seconds later. Adrian didn’t want her to think this was only because they were soulmates. He honestly really liked her. 

_ But what if … what if we aren’t actually soulmates. What if I misread her, and she didn’t see the color.  _ The little voice in the back of Adrian’s head was always there, but ever since Nova McLain had walked into his life, it turned up more often and he didn’t like it. She brought out the worst in him, he was always so awkward around her. Yet, she always seemed unaffected. 

“Much appreciated. That was fun though.”

“It’s hard not to have fun when you’re so popular, I expect.”

He scoffed. “Like you wouldn’t know.” He imitated a girly voice as he squealed, “It’s Insomnia! She beat Gargoyle! We love her!” 

Rolling her eyes, she smacked Adrian in the arm. “Hey, where’s the Dread Warden?” 

“I gave him to the birthday boy. Did you know, he  _ really _ likes superheroes?”

“Truly, I couldn’t tell.” 

He grinned at her, and after a moment, she smiled back. It was the first time he had seen her smile, and it lit up her face. Her eyes brightened.  _ Great skies _ , she was beautiful. 

“Somehow, I don’t think we’re going to find Nightmare here,” she said as they reached the kid’s side of the park. 

Ignoring her, Adrian asked, “Which ride did you operate?

“What? Oh, um. A lot of them. We would rotate.” Her response was vague and she looked uncomfortable, but he shrugged it off. Nova was so reserved, and she didn’t like to talk about her past. 

“Have you seen anyone today that you used to work with?” Nova glanced around, and she seemed to be contemplating her surroundings. 

“Not really,” she stammered. “I, uh … didn’t usually work Thursdays.” 

They circled around to the back corner of the carnival, where the old, deteriorating structures of the park could be seen beyond the chain-link fence. Adrian watched Nova as they walked, contemplating whether he should try to hold her hand again. He wanted her to know that this day wasn’t really about finding Nightmare. He wanted her to know that this was a date.

Nova’s jaw tensed as she stared at the weedy walkways between carnival games, at the roof of the funhouse looking like it was close to caving in. 

 

***

Adrian paused at a ticket booth that had once been white but was now so covered in filth and water damage it was difficult to tell. He sketched two sets of handcuffs onto the wood siding. He handed one to Nova and tucked the other set into his pocket. It occurred to Nova that if this day had really been about finding Nightmare from the start, he already would have had these with him. She stared at his profile as he set the point of the marker against the ticket booth again. 

“Adrian?” 

Hand stilling, he turned his head to look at her. 

“Was this a date?” She watched him as he straightened, and she could have sworn there was a tinge of red on his cheeks. His lips parted, at first in surprise, but then in hesitation as he searched for a response. 

“Well. This was the first time a girl’s ever won me an enormous  stuffed Dread Warden doll, so... you tell me."

Her cheek twitched. "That wasn't a real answer." 

"I know." 

They stared at each other, and Nova's heart started doing acrobatics inside her chest. 

"Would you have said yes," said Adrian, "if it was?" 

_ No _ , her brain said. Emphatic and aggressive.  _ No _ . 

While something else whispered back...  _ Maybe _ . 

No. No matter what. He is a  _ Renegade _ . 

But Nova, suddenly a coward, looked past Adrian's shoulder and plastered a startled frown to her face. "I think I just saw something." 

Adrian spun around, simultaneously reaching his arm out to tuck her behind him, which was so obnoxiously gallant that Nova found herself wanting to both shove the arm away and also take his hand in hers. In fact, as she stared down at the fingers that were barely brushing against her own, she had the most absurd notion to lace her fingers through them and lift his hand to her mouth, to place on single kiss against those knuckles. 

The flash of fantasy paralyzed her. 

“Where?” 

“Inside the funhouse? Maybe we should go inside and look around.” 

Adrian nodded. “If we do see Nightmare, you know not to let her touch you, right?” 

She shivered, looking again at his dark skin, his lithe fingers—touching her, but not really. “I know,” she murmured, and moved back just enough to break the hesitant contact. Nova closed her eyes. She focused on her breath, trying to drown out the surge of sensations flooding her body. She needed to stop thinking about handsome smiles and small touches and kisses and dates. If Adrian liked her—really liked her—it was only because he didn’t really know her. 

He would never like the girl beneath the lie. Behind the mask. Nova Artino. And it didn’t matter to her anyway, because she could never fall for a Renegade. 

The words shattered any doubt that had gathered around her. He was a Renegade. 

He was her enemy. 

And he could never be anything more, no matter if he had come here with ulterior motives. 

“Ready?” 

Nova glanced at Adrian’s hand. 

_ He had drawn himself a gun _ . 

Nova drew in a breath and gave Adrian a fierce nod. 

“I’m ready.” 

***

The fun house was a rickety two-story building covered in peeling white-and-orange paint. Its few windows sported crooked shutters and slatted boards long ago nailed across them. There was no glass. Spiderwebs, some as thick and dark as yarn, were strung across the overhang of the wraparound porch. 

The porch groaned beneath Nova’s weight as she stepped up to the double-door entrance. As they stepped into the decaying building, Nova took in her surroundings. The first room was without windows, and Adrian held the door open long enough for them to get their bearings, though they could not see very far into the old attraction. 

“Someone’s been here recently,” she said, pointing at the ground, where clear footprints could be seen passing through the years of accumulated dust. 

Nova grabbed one of her favorite inventions—her exothermic micro-flares. She gave it a snap and tossed it through the next doorway. Adrian grinned at her. “That’s neat.” 

“Exothermic micro-flares. I made them myself.” 

“If you happen to run out, I could also draw a flashlight.” 

Adrian let go of the door and it creaked loudly, then shut with a resounding click, trapping them inside with the stale, silent air. Adrian trailed behind Nova as she followed the series of switchback paths that looped back and around on each other a number of times. She left her flare as they passed it, intending to use it as a way to track their path. 

They stepped out into the hallway, and the floor tilted beneath them. 

Nova gasped and tumbled to the side, knocking into Adrian. His arms wrapped around her as they crashed into the wall. 

They froze, neither daring to move while the hallway settled around them. Nova’s heart was pounding against her chest, her cheeks flushed as she met Adrian’s gaze. She felt Adrian’s fingers curling into the fabric of her uniform. Her face flushed more, and she pulled away, leaning against the wall. 

“Heads up—the floor moves.” 

Adrian grinned at her, and her heart swelled at his open smile. “You don’t say.” 

“It’s activated by weight. If we both stick to this side, we should be able to keep it pretty steady.” 

“Wow, you really are good at physics.” 

Nova glowered at him. “ _ Now _ you decide to become sarcastic?”

Adrian followed her through the hall, each of them keeping their footsteps as close to the wall as possible to keep it from swaying beneath them again. 

Adrian yelped and grabbed her elbow, pulling her behind him. Nova followed his gaze and sighed. One of the floor-to-ceiling mirrors was curved to make Adrian appear short and squat, while Nova’s was altered to look eight feet tall. 

Nova pulled her arm away and turned to face him, settling her hands on her hips.“For the record, while it’s very charming that you keep trying to protect me, I would like to remind you that I actually know how to defend myself.” 

Adrian grimaced. “I know. It’s just … instinct.” 

“Well, stop it.”

He held his hands up in resignation. “Won’t happen again.” He hesitated. “I mean, unless I’m pretty sure you’re about to die, then I’m absolutely going to rescue you, whether you like it or not.” 

Nova rolled her eyes and walked into the hall of mirrors. Adrian gasped and spun around, holding the tranquilizer gun he had made with one hand, rubbing his head. He must have crashed into the wall to chase after “Nightmare.” Nova had attempted to position herself far enough away from him that Adrian would catch a glimpse of her out of the corner of his eye and assume it was Nightmare. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing,” he said, blinking as if to clear the vision from his head. “How do we get out of here?” 

They fumbled around for another minute until they found a staircase. Traversing the dark hall, they fell into step together, ready for what was coming. 

Nova watched as Adrian peered at a picture, and inched backwards towards the hidden slide she had found. She needed to get away from him, for more reasons than one. If she didn’t leave now, she was afraid she would forget her plan and just spend the day looking for a ghost with Adrian. 

Nova stepped onto the platform and screamed as a loud  _ ka-thunk _ blasted through the air. As she slid down the slide, she heard Adrian shouting her name. 

“Nova!  _ Nova!”  _ She could hear him pounding on the trapdoor, still shouting her name. “Nova!” 

“I’m okay!”

Though the sounds were slightly muffled through the floor, she heard Adrian cry out, and the creepy puppet taunt him. 

“Adrian?” She yelled up at him. 

“Hold on, I’m coming down to you.” 

“No—wait! I think there might be two routes through this place. We should keep going—check them both out.” There was a long silence from above, before Adrian finally responded, “Okay. I’ll meet you at the exit.” 

***

“You have a lot of nerve showing your face here,” snarled Nightmare, glaring at the Detonator, her voice low and muffled behind the mask. 

“What? I’m not allowed to stop and say hello to a dear friend?” 

“ _ You,”  _ Nightmare said, with a growl in her tone, “cost me a valuable connection when you went after the Librarian and all the goods he’d stockpiled. Do you know how much work I put in to trading with him? How long it took me to cultivate that relationship? All for nothing, thanks to you.” 

Adrian took a step back, moving out of the path between them.

“Blame me all you want for your sorry misfortunes, but let’s not forget that you started this all when you decided to go after Captain Chromium. If you hadn’t been so careless, the Renegades wouldn’t be after us at all, now would they? They wouldn’t have gotten your gun. They wouldn’t have traced it back to the Librarian, and it would be business as usual, now wouldn’t it?” 

“Except they didn’t attack us after the parade, did they? They took the Puppeteer and they let the rest of the Anarchists off the hook. It wasn’t until you got lazy and impatient—when you decided to to take a risk you shouldn’t have. You know what I think?” Nightmare raised the gun again. “I think the Anarchists will be better off without you.” 

She fired again and the Detonator cried out and fell behind the tiny theater. She continued shooting, letting off hour more bullets until the revolver clicked over, spent. 

Nightmare holstered her gun and leaped from the roof, landing cat-like on the ground where Adrian had stood moments before. She hesitated, staring at the theater. Adrian couldn’t see her face around the drape of the hood, but he sensed her waiting, bracing herself.  

Nightmare hauled herself up onto the ledge, then tumbled gracelessly down to the other side, and stood there, staring at the Detonator. The entire front of her shirt was covered in blood. More dripped down her midriff and coated the bands around her arms. 

Her nostrils flared as she forced herself up onto shaky legs. She cursed, then spat into the dirt 

between her and Nightmare. Blue sparks began to crackle at her fingertips as she stumbled forward. “Ace never should have taken you in,” growled the Detonator. The sparks began to converge into something no bigger than a tennis ball at first, but grew quickly. “You might have had potential once, but now? You’re nothing but a disappointment.” 

***

Nova almost shrank back at Ingrid’s words. She was supposed to be acting, but something had

changed in her actions since they had made their plans. She was more hostile, more dangerous, and more unpredictable than usual, and that meant danger. 

“Ingrid?” She hated the quiver in her voice, but she was scared. The explosive was bigger than a basketball, bigger than any bomb Ingrid had ever made, to Nova’s knowledge. “What are you doing?” 

Adrian’s head snapped up, and he stared at her. 

“If I’m going to die, it’s not going to be alone.” 

Nova inhaled, widening her stance and tilting her head down, ready to move at a moment’s notice. She watched as Ingrid moved her arm back, and Nova paused for a moment more. It had to look real. 

_ After all, one cannot be brave who has no fear.  _

Nova jumped a second after Ingrid hurled the bomb at her. She had positioned herself near a window to the funhouse, and she slipped through the shattered windowpane as dust and ashes floated around her. Nova ran back to where she had stashed her bag and pulled her Renegades uniform back on. 

 

***

Half of the funhouse was gone. 

Broken floorboards and a few of the interior rooms were exposed, including the metal slide and what remained of the hall of mirrors. The roof was toppling inward, ready to cave onto the mound of smoking wood and plaster beneath. 

“Nova…” 

His disbelief was quickly overcome with denial, and he lifted his wrist. “Nova—Insomnia, where are you? Report.” 

_ She couldn’t be gone. There was still color. She was okay.  _

And yet, Adrian wasn’t sure. The carnage around them was so severe. If Nova had been anywhere near the front when the bomb exploded… 

Adrian’s eye caught on something shining beneath a fallen window shutter. He kicked the shutter out of the way, stooped, and picked up the slim, molded piece of steel. 

Nightmare’s face mask. 

Turning it over, he saw that one side of it was streaked with blood. 

A delirious laugh broke through the hazy air. The Detonator was covered in blood, kneeling on the ground a few feet away. 

She was drenched in blood. 

And she was  _ laughing.  _

“I don’t know who’s more gullible,” she said, rolling her shoulders. “Nightmare … or you.”

Adrian mostly ignored her, and instead focused on scanning around the park for any sign of Nova. 

“That was fun, wasn’t it? That little spat of ours. It was all staged for your benefit, you know, so I hope you were entertained. You see? Fake blood. She was firing blacks. You know, Queen Bee thinks she’s the only savvy actress around, but I think I’ve proved otherwise.” 

Adrian shook his head. “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t you see? We planned this all, to make you think that we were both dead. So you would stop looking for us. Get it now?”

Hissing, Adrian scrambled to sit up. 

“It’s time to finish what we started at the library.” 

Adrian snarled and drew on the power from his tattoo. The cylinder on his arm began to glow a molten white. 

“The Sentinel,” she gasped. ”You’re the Sentinel. Oh, that’s  _ rich.”   _

“Who killed Lady Indomitable?” 

“I seem to recall you were eager to negotiate with the Librarian. Don’t I get the same treatment?”

“No. The Renegades are done negotiating with Anarchists.” 

He dug the handcuffs from his pockets and bound her wrists together, then pulled out his marker and began drawing lines crisscrossing her hands. 

“Adrian!” 

He looked up as the sound of wingbeats thrummed in the air. Thunderbird dropped out of the sky, a lightning bolt crackling in one fist. “Your message said you found Nightmare!”

“I did. She’s dead. And… Nova…” 

_ She couldn’t be gone. She couldn’t— _

“Oh,  _ Nova,”  _ said the Detonator, dragging his attention back to her. “I already dealt with her.”

She was only trying to get a reaction.  _ She couldn't be dead.  _ But that haughty look, that careless smirk... 

_ I already dealt with her.  _ He roared and threw himself at her, seeing nothing but livid flashes as those words repeated in his head. 

Thunderbird caught him by the arm and slowed him down just long enough for another, infinitely stronger arm to clamp around Adrian’s chest and haul him backward. Two hands clapped onto his shoulders and he found himself staring into his dad’s eyes. Captain Chromium’s eyes. 

“Adrian!” he yelled, scanning him up and down. “What happened? Are you all right?”

“No!” Shouldn’t it have been obvious? Had he not heard what she just said?

But he knew his frantic, furious thought weren’t really what his dad was asking about. Hugh Everhart pulled one hand away, looking down at his fingers wet with blood Adrian had already forgotten about the scratch from the nail. It was nothing. Nothing. Not when Nova… when Nova was… 

_ Where is Nova? _

***

Nova stumbled through the ruins of the funhouse. She was tired, sore, and covered in dust. Making her way back to the entrance, she pulled out her handgun. Nova wasn’t sure if her plan had worked or if Adrian would turn on her the second she appeared. 

As Nova appeared in the doorway, she took in the sight before her. The area was swarming with Renegades, and glowed with a strange blue light. 

_ Ingrid _ . 

She had changed the plan again. There were small blue orbs glowing all over the amusement park. As Nova watched, a leg of the rollercoaster track exploded. 

The bombs glowed brighter and brighter as Ingrid smiled. 

Nova raised the gun.

_ Pull the trigger, Nova _ . 

Their rundown apartment. Her mother’s blood on her face. A murderer below her. 

_ Pull the trigger. _

Nova closed her eyes and pressed down on the trigger. 

The Detonator’s head snapped back, hitting the boards of the theater with a crack. 

“I found this,” she stammered, shaking the gun a little as everyone’s attention turned to her. “In a . . . a duffel bag.” 

“All right, everyone,” said Simon. “Let’s get as many patrol units as we can here, pronto, to help with the inured and start getting this place cleaned up.”  

Adrian turned to her. He was shaking. “Nova..” 

Nova ran her fingers through her hair in an attempt to shake out some of the dust. Meeting Adrian’s gaze, she stumbled down the steps, tripping on a fallen beam. 

Adrian leaped forward, catching her before she could collapse. “You were in there the whole time? Great skies, Nova, do you know how worried I was?” 

Nova’s body was numb. She sagged into Adrian and murmured, “I pulled the trigger.”

“Nova? I’m going to be chivalrous right now and carry you to safety.”

“Okay.” She didn’t bother to fight him, all she could do was slump into his arms. 

Adrian rested his cheek on her hair for a moment before lifting her into his arms. 

“I thought you were dead,” he whispered into her hair. 

Nova pushed out of Adrian’s arms. “If I was dead, wouldn’t _ — _ wouldn’t the color be gone?” 

Adrian stared at her incredulously. “So you can see it?” Nova nodded and licked her lips, drawing his gaze to them. 

“You never answered my question.”

Nova’s heartbeat sped up, and her lips started to tingle. “What question?” 

“If I asked you on a real date, would you say yes?” He stepped forward and grabbed her hands, pulling her closer to him, her heart pounding against her chest. 

“Are you asking?” 

“I’m asking.” Rather than wait for an answer, he craned his head and closed his eyes. 

Nova gasped and jerked her hands out of his grasp. Her cheeks flushed as she stared at her feet. “My uncle will probably be watching the news. He’ll be worried. I … I should get home.” She turned and ran, scrambling up the fence and running out of the amusement park. 

 


	4. Chapter 4

Earn his affection.   
Nova sat in the statue glen with Adrian beside her, contemplating her options. His hand was so close, she could almost picture herself reaching out to lace their fingers together, but her mind flashed immediately to him tearing his hand out of hers and telling her she’d lost her mind. That she’d lost her chance and they could never be more than friends.   
Honey’s words flashed back through her mind, and she tried to channel what she thought Honey would do. A brush of her shoulder against his, a graze of her fingertips?   
The thought of it made her shiver.   
Nova took a deep breath and waited for Adrian to meet her eyes again.   
Her gaze skipped down to Adrian’s lips.   
She gulped and leaned forward.   
Adrian took in a sudden breath and, before Nova knew what was happening, he had jumped to his feet and started brushing himself off. Nova’s heart lept into her throat and she tried to ignore the blush spreading across her face.   
“Yeah, wow, we need to hurry,” he said, glancing at his wristband. “Don’t want to be late for. . . uh. . . jousting or. . . whatever it was. . .”  
Nova gaped up at him.   
Sweet rot. She’d tried to kiss him and . . . he had rejected her.   
So that’s what that felt like. She’d lost her chance, running away from him at the fun house. Mortification overtook her, and she was grateful that he seemed determined not to look at her, because if he did she didn’t know if she could keep her feelings down. She wasn’t sure if she could keep herself from tearing up if their eyes met.   
It was all too much, but it gave her a moment to gather her wits and shove down her disappointment.   
Shove it far, fair down inside.   
So far down that she could almost convince herself it wasn’t there at all. 

 

Adrian had never been more confused in his life. In the months since the fun house, Nova had been sending so many conflicting signals that he didn’t know what to think. He had felt Nova’s heartbeat speed up when his arms had wrapped around her after the floor moved. He thought that maybe she liked him too, but she’d run away from him. He’d tried to kiss her and she had run.   
He could have sworn she tried to kiss him back at the statue glen at City Park, but he had been too scared.   
It all came down to that. He was terrified of Nova McLain. She was so mysterious, so confident, and he understood absolutely nothing about her. As he studied the room around him, a vision filled his thoughts. Adrian made his way up the stairs to the living room, but before he could open his mouth Hugh announced, without turning away from the TV. “No more talk about Nightmare tonight. Please.”  
Adrian scowled. “I wasn’t going to. I just wanted to ask if it’s okay for me to paint my studio.”   
“The storage room?”  
Adrian pushed up his glasses. “If storage is code for ‘Adrian’s random drawing stuff,’ then yes.   
“I think he means the room we planned on using for storage,” said Simon, appearing behind Adrian with a bowl of popcorn, “but we didn’t end up needing it.”  
“Yep, that’s the one. So, can I paint it?”   
His dads shrugged. “Fine by me.”   
“Thanks!”   
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” said Hugh, muting the television. “This conversation is not over.”   
Adrian paused, one foot already out the door. “It’s not?”  
“Fifteen minutes ago you were ready to lead a full-scale manhunt for nightmare, and now you’re painting a room? Why don’t you take twenty seconds and tell us what it is you’re doing?”  
“I’m painting a mural. It’s a pretty new idea. So can I . . .?”  
“Adrian. We just want you to talk to us for a minute. You've seemed distant since . . . well, since Cosmopolis Park.”  
Adrian bristled. Even though he knew he had been distant, it was nothing to them. They were the ones trying to govern and fix a broken city. “I didn’t want to. . . bother you?”  
“You never bother us,” said Simon. “You’re always our top priority, no matter what we’re dealing with. I know we haven’t been giving you much attention lately, but it doesn’t mean we haven’t noticed how you’ve changed.”   
Adrian felt the prickle of tattoos imprinted on his body. He knew he had changed, quite dramatically in fact, since Nova McLain had hurtled into his life and turned everything upside down. He still hadn’t told his dads he’d found his soulmate. “I haven’t changed.”   
The comment earned a snort from both dads. He scowled at them.   
“How are things going with you and Nova?” said Hugh.   
Adrian gawked at him. If only you knew. “Wh. . . what do you mean?”   
“Are you two . . . dating?” Adrian gaped at them. He must have looked horrified, because Hugh only raised his palms and asked Simon, “We are allowed to ask that, aren't we?”   
“Nova’s a friend. We’re fine.” We are most certainly not fine. “I don’t want to talk about it.”   
“Told you so . . . ,” Simon sang under his breath.   
Can I go now?”  
“Fine, return to your solitude. Go make your masterpiece.”   
Adrian returned to his art studio and began drawing paint cans out of earthy tones and bright tropical colors.   
He couldn’t deny that he liked Nova. He really really liked her. After the fiasco at the carnival, he had tried to show her how much he cared. That he wanted her to know it was supposed to be a date. That he wanted to kiss her. To protect her. Nova had been gone so long, he had thought she was dead. In that time he had thought about little else, and now it seemed as if his thoughts were always filled with Nova. He wanted to know her better. He wanted her to trust him, to show her that she didn’t have to do everything on her own. She was so mysterious, never trusting anyone. He was determined to show her that she didn’t have to go through life alone. And he would start by painting her dream.   
He considered the blank walls once more and began to paint.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LAST REWRITE I PROMISE   
> (also this is pretty bad i'm sorry, no editing or anything bc i'm awkward and didn't want to ask)

Nova was  _ so _ close, it was killing him. She had been sending small signs all night, from teasing glances to brushes of her fingertips against his. Her head was leaning on his shoulder, her hand inched from his. 

Adrian sat up straighter and turned to face Nova. She had immediately exiled herself to the corner of the couch farthest from him, her knees curled into her chest. 

“The gala tomorrow night,” he blurted. Adrian’s heart was racing so quickly and loudly he was afraid Nova would hear. 

“Excuse me?”

“The gala. If you’re going and I’m going and… would you like to go together? As a date, I mean. Officially, this time. I know I wasn’t clear with the whole carnival thing, so I’ll just put it out there from the start. I would like you to be my date. I would really like that a lot, actually. . . If you want to.” 

Nova gaped at him, her eyes wide. She paused briefly, before taking a deep breath and whispering, “Okay.”

Adrian signed in relief and settled his arm back around her shoulder, smiling as Nova settled her head back on his shoulder. 

She seemed lost in thought, and the fact that she wasn’t watching him gave him the courage to do something he’d been wanting to since she’d joined his team. 

“Nova?” He whispered. 

Nova turned her head up to meet his eyes, and although he knew it could end badly, he leaned down and kissed her. Nova gasped against his mouth and Adrian pulled away, his heart having lept into his throat. Nova was gazing at him in dismay, her eyes glancing from his eyes to his lips. In one quick motion, she reached her hand behind Adrian’s neck and pulled his mouth back to hers. 

The kiss started out soft and sweet, innocent and curious. But soon, from nowhere, a desperate, unfulfilled need. To pull her closer, kiss deeper. Nova’s hands roamed from his face to his neck, finally tangling in his hair. Adrian’s arms circled her waist and turned her body so she was cocooned in his arms. 

The pressure of her body sent pain shooting through the cut on his stomach. Adrian hissed and jerked away, pressing his hand to his side. 

Nova’s eyes snapped open as her face paled. “Adrian?” 

“Nothing.”

“What _ — _ ”

“Nothing,” he repeated, before leaning back down and hungrily pressing his lips back to hers. Nova trembled under his touch, kissing him harder, and Adrian moaned in response. His fingers roamed her waist, and Nova gasped as he found her bared skin. 

Nova grasped at his shirt, her fingers gathering fistfuls of the material. As she kissed him, Adrian felt his heart rate slow as his eyelids started to feel heavier and heavier. He felt his arms loosen from Nova’s hair and his breaths slow as his mind slowly faded into the quiet murmur of sleep. 


	6. Chapter 6

Nova braced herself against a wall as the ceiling crashed down around her. She gasped for air as she tried to make sense of her muddled thoughts. The Sentinel had been chasing her throughout the whole battle, but the last time she had turned to fight, she wasn’t met with the masked helmet of the vigilante Nova was expecting, but the enraged face of Adrian Everhart. 

Of  _ course _ it had to be Adrian. Of course the Sentinel had to be the one person that would make the inevitable reveal of her identity the most painful. The one person she felt safe around. Her soulmate. 

Nova coughed as dust rose in clouds from the wreckage and stumbled away, turning to see the masked vigilante through the haze. Nova knew that Adrian could quickly overpower her as far as strength went, but she was much faster than the metal suit, so Nova turned and ran. 

 

Adrian watched as Nightmare paused for a split second, staring at him, before turning and sprinting out of the wreckage. She was fast, maybe even faster than Nova. Adrian chased after her, but his suit slowed him down considerably, and Nightmare was small and lithe. 

Adrian had drawn himself a gun at the beginning of the fight, never intending to use it. But now, as Nightmare sprinted away from him, he raised it and fired. The bullet missed. By a lot. Nightmare turned and watched him for a moment, and although her face was concealed by the mask, he could tell she was smirking. As she ran once more, Adrian summoned the energy beam and sent a bright stream of energy straight at Nightmare. He had always been better at shooting the beam compared to any gun. 

The beam hit Nightmare in the back just as she was swerving to disappear around the corner. She collapsed, and Adrian raised the gun again. His mind flashed back to the afternoon in the training hall when Nova had tried to teach him how to shoot. Although he had been mostly distracted by how close she was then, he remembered the stance she had shown him. Peering through the sights, he peered at Nightmare, who had begun to groan back to life, pressing her hand to the ground in an attempt to stand. Adrian relaxed his body and fired. Her blood arced across the ground, a deep crimson among the pale beige of the rubble. Nightmare cried out and slumped against the ground, blood seeping from her chest. 

Something was wrong. The world was darkening, the sky fading to a dull grey. 

Adrian began to stride towards Nightmare, slowly at first. He caught Nightmare’s gaze as she stared up at him, helplessly, her blue eyes filled with tears. 

_ No. It couldn’t be— _

He knew those eyes. They had been what had drawn him to her in the first place, all those months ago at the Renegade parade. A rich blue, speckled with heather gray. The eyes he had looked into countless times, that drew him in no matter what was around him. The eyes of the girl he loved, staring back at him from the face of an Anarchist. A villain. 

Nova’s face paled, turning an ashen grey. It spread across her face like frost, ending with her eyes, until the blue and gray were indistinguishable. 

Adrian ran to Nova, kneeling beside her and pressed a hand to her bloodied chest, cupping her cheek with the other. 

“Why didn’t you tell me? I would have understood, I would have listened,” he whispered, his voice breaking. Nova’s eyelids started to flicker shut as her skin paled further. “Hey, stay with me. Look at me, Nova. Stay with me.  I’ll get help.” He yelled out, getting louder and louder with each word before turning back to Nova. And then it hit him. 

He did this. Nova is  _ dying _ , and it’s  _ his  _ fault. 

‘I’m so sorry, Nova.” He kissed her forehead. Her skin was growing colder, the color almost completely gone from the world.

_ There was no going back.  _

 

Nova was on fire. It felt as if hot coals were being pressed to her side, getting hotter and hotter every second. Her blood was hot and sticky against She watched as Adrian scrambled around in desperation above her, trying to find something _ — _ anything _ — _ to help her. 

“Adrian. Stop,” Nova said, as commanding as she could when her whole body was burning. Every breath set fire to her lungs and every tiny movement was like being stabbed by a thousand needles. Adrian spun back towards her, kneeling at her side. “It’s no use. There’s nothing here. It’s gone, isn’t it? I don’t have much time left.” She gestured to the world around them. “I’m sorry you couldn’t see it longer.” 

“It’s not gone yet. You still have time. Someone will come, you’ll be fine. You’re going to be fine. You’re going to be fine, Nova Artino. You have to be.” Adrian’s voice was desperate and broken, holding on to anything that meant she would be okay, that they could work this out. That they would both live. He glanced down at the blood pooling around his legs. “It’s still red,” Adrian said, glancing back at her face, and down to her lips. 

“C’mere,” Nova whispered. She reached up, and even though it sent pain shooting through her entire body, she wrapped her hand around the back of his head and pulled his lips to hers. 

“You need to save your breath,” Adrian murmured against her lips.

“I don’t care.” She let out a small gasp, her face clouded with pain. 

Adrian kissed her lips one last time. When he looked into her eyes, they were empty. Adrian let out a sob, burying his head in her stomach.

Her chest didn’t rise, no pulse could be heard. Adrian cried into the fabric of Nightmare’s uniform. Every time his tears dried out, he would feel the blood beneath him, feel Nova’s cold skin, and break down again. 

When the medics finally came, it was far too late. They tried to take Nova from him, but Adrian insisted on carrying her himself. Through his tears, he reached down and closed her eyes. 

“I’m so sorry,” he whispered against her hair. “I will never forget you.”


End file.
